Heat Stroke

So Miss Rave had a heat stroke today, even though it was only 70-something (it was muggy). They're so not acclimated to any warm weather, so the running around while I mowed was a bit much. I had her at the vet's within 15 minutes after I initially dunked her in water. Her temp then was 105.4. She was seizing, ataxic with muscle tremors and twitching. They gave her valium and muscle relaxers to stop the tremors and got her temp down to 102. I was able to take her back home, and she's been fine, albeit thirsty.

From what I've been reading and from what the vet said, there may be internal damage which may not show right away. My question is, has anyone else ever had a dog suffer long-term damage from heat strokes? If so, what should I expect?

I am so glad she made it!
I lost a BC to heat stroke back in 2001 and it is truly horrible. I say I lost her but
in reality I made the decision to euthanize. Her body might have recovered but the brain damage was done...

I would think there could be kidney/ liver problems but I am no vet,nor do I pretend to be one...

Piper had a mild case of heat stroke as a puppy, and has suffered no lasting effects except that she tires a bit more easily in the heat. However, her case was so mild I'm not sure that it's comparative at all.

That is scary. Sami's always been supersensitive to heat, so I've had to learn to be conservative with her. And, for what it's worth, all 3 seem to heat up much more quickly when it's humid. They just don't do as well as they do when it's drier.

Sorry to hear this, very scary. Overheating can happen is surprisingly simple situations and it is not always hard work or even much activity that can bring it on. I know how you feel. I have always gone to some length to avoid heat stroke. My best dog seems to have a problem and it comes on without much warning. I keep a very close eye on him. He somehow seems to know when he is overheating which is fortunate. He will stop working and if I notice he stops paying attention I stop things. If he starts a little head shaking almost like shivering I stop things. I understand some dogs will keep working until it is to late. I try to keep water out for him when he is training like a kiddie pool. I am also in the habit of carrying a couple of large containers of water in my Jeep just in case. I am told by my Vet that if it happens once it can happen easily again and so on. However, I am not a Vet so I would urge you to check it out. I hope your dog is the type that will display a warning of some sort for you.

Thanks guys for the well wishes. Rave seems OK today, although probably wondering why I keep watching her like a hawk. I'm going to take her in for bloodwork monday to check for any liver or kidney damage. We have NW Regionals next weekend, and it's supposed to be mid-80's. I'm going to ask the vet's opinion, but right now I feel like pulling her and not pushing it. She's not on a team, so won't affect anyone.

A side effect of heat stroke is cell death, which occurs at temperatures of 107 and above. 109 degrees and higher is almost unrecoverable. The internal membrane of the intestines will die and slough off, resulting in bloody diarrhea and affecting food absorption. Kidney cells will also be damaged and will not recover, resulting in chronic kidney disease or death. Blood clotting factors will be damaged, resulting in DIC and death, and also brain damage can occur with lasting side effects.

Heat stroke is a nasty, nasty thing and the dog can suffer enormously from it. I'm sorry this happened to your dog. I've had some close calls in the past and I've come to learn how lucky I was that no lasting damage occured. I now am very, very careful about overheating a dog.

Thanks for the info Wendy. I've been watching for any blood in the stool, and so far none thankfully. So far she's been "normal" with nothing out of the ordinary. But I am going to the vet's Monday to get her thoroughly checked out.

I overheated one of my dogs last summer, not severely thank goodness. I picked up on the symptoms she was starting to exhibit and got her into cool water right away, but it was still scary because I didn't know whether the seizing and other stuff was inevitable once the process began. My understanding is that a dog that has overheated once will have a lower threshold of tolerance thereafter, and it does seem to be true for my dog. I also believe that my dog's temperament contributes to her tendency to heat up quickly; when working or playing, she's an intense dog who is prone to high levels of stress and/or excitement. I would think this is probably true for other dogs of this temperament. I don't know if Rave fits into that category but if so it's probably something to consider as part of your "heat index" formula.

This over-heating situation makes me nervous. We have moved from the west to the east where it is hot and humid. My best dog has shown signs of over-heating and I am concerned. I bought him and I know his background. There is a good chance that he has been over-heated in his past. He has a couple of times come down with a high temp a day after working and we have not really been able to identify why. I am aware that it can come on very quickly and without much warning. Does anyone have experience with observing. Is there some very early signs to watch for in your experience.